'When Messi played out wide, he was easy to catch - I never had any issues playing against him': Manchester United legend opens up on playing against Argentine great
Lionel Messi didn't have it all his own way in early meetings with Manchester United - as one legend describes
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Manchester United came up against Lionel Messi four times between 2008 and 2011, winning just one of the games against the Argentine and Barcelona side he starred in.
For Patrice Evra, the Manchester United left-back during that period, marking Messi proved relatively comfortable in the first two of those meetings, during the 2008 Champions League semi-final.
Manchester United managed to keep a clean sheet in both legs as they progressed to the Moscow final, with Evra and his fellow defenders keeping the Barcelona forward line of Messi, Thierry Henry and Samuel Eto'o quiet.
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Messi started the match on the right-wing on both occasions, something Evra found relatively comfortable when considering the talent of FourFourTwo's greatest player of all time.
“For Manchester United, I remember a game against Barcelona in the Camp Nou and Sir Alex Ferguson told me that if we lose the game, it would be because of me," Evra said on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet. "The boss knew how to treat me and how to get the best out of me, so I went out there, we got a draw and Cristiano Ronaldo missed a penalty.
“I had a good game against Lionel Messi, he dribbled past me once because I went too fast [to close him down], and he put the ball over my head, but being honest, when Messi played out wide, for me, he was easy to catch. My issue was when he went into the pockets in the middle, but I never had any issues playing against him.”
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Evra versus Messi in 2008 (Image credit: Getty Images)
While Manchester United managed to keep Barcelona quiet again in the second leg, winning 1-0 at Old Trafford thanks to a stunning Paul Scholes strike to book their place in the final against Chelsea, Evra admits that Barcelona were the superior side in the finals they played against them in 2009 and 2011.
"In our two Champions League final defeats to Barcelona, we were outgunned," Evra added. "We were too arrogant and tried playing the Manchester United way. I remember the first final in Rome, there was no doubt in my mind that we weren’t going to win, and that’s what happened where they killed us.
Messi shone in the 2011 final (Image credit: Getty Images)
“They scored their first goal and started playing tiki-taka football, so the boss focused on man-marking rather than putting us in the right formation. He put Anderson against Xavi, [Andrés] Iniesta, plus Messi. So, they destroyed us.
“At Wembley, I had a bad game. Wayne Rooney was unbelievable. We lost because David Villa killed us. We played the United way, but I don’t regret it as I’d rather lose that way than park the bus.”
Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.
